Humanity's Last Stand
by Blackwolf501
Summary: The warriors called "Shinobi" are long gone, the only thing that remained was a world plagued by Titans, humanity is at the brink of extinction, there is only slaughter. Can a young boy protect the ones closest to him and destroy the Titans?
1. Chapter 1

Humanity's Last Stand

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto/Shingeki no Kyojin, or any of their characters. I may do things with these characters that you don't like or agree with. But that is just the nature of Fanfiction, if my efforts don't fit your idea of what a Naruto/Attack on Titan crossover should be, then I can only offer my apologies and perhaps a suggestion. Writing your own story is the only way to ensure the story progresses exactly the way you want it, plus it gives me something to read.**

**Some general clarifications before I start this fic, please read it as I don't want to repeat it every chapter.**

**This fic is general in nature, and has M rating for obvious reasons, but the main thing people would like to know are pairings. Honestly, I don't have any plans for pairing, because Attack on Titan and Naruto are known for their plots, and I want to do just that. **

**Why I am saying the possibility of pairing is very less? Because for me my story is important, if some characters have feelings for each other then that pairing may happen, but I'm not going to force it. And most of all I won't make commitments which I cannot fulfill.**

**I'm only focusing on the plot, and development of characters, and I have a story which is a combination of both Naruto and AOT, so please don't expect everything from AOT.**

**English is my second language, and I welcome any suggestion that readers have to offer.**

**That's all for now..**

**Enjoy the story...**

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**Chapter 1: Naruto**

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The bright rays of the sun enlightened the entire sky, and marked the beginning of a new day for the people of Wall Maria. The loud shouts of Roosters woke up many people who were currently enjoying their peaceful sleep.

The sound of birds chirping was heard in many places, and slowly the atmosphere that was cold due to the night started getting warm, due to the warmth that the sun rays were providing.

As the sunlight spread around the area, the various buildings, shops, and offices in Wall Maria were now visible as the darkness of the night vanished.

In a small room of a house, a young boy slept peacefully, unaware that the day had just begun, a little girl was sleeping beside him and was snuggled up close to the boy who had his arms around her in a protective manner.

A pair of violet eyes watched happily as these kids were in their own dream world, they looked so innocent and gentle; and this brought a smile on the woman's face who was watching these kids.

Kushina Uzumaki silently entered the room, her silent footsteps approaching the bed in which her children were sleeping happily. She gently slipped into the bed, and now laid beside her children.

She gently tucked away a small strand of red hair that were falling on her daughter's face, Kasumi looked so much like her that it was quite shocking, she had the same violet eyes, red hair, the only difference was that her face was angular in place of Kushina's oval face. The trait which Kasumi got from her father.

Thinking about him, made Kushina's blood boil, she could never forgive that man, no matter what.

She looked at her son, Naruto inherited almost everything from that man. He had silky black hair, and the same dark black eyes, but he had the same small chubby face as like her, when she was his age.

But the thing that worried her, was the person that Naruto was holding in his arms,

Naruto loved his little sister more than anyone else, perhaps even more than Kushina. From the moment Kasumi was born, her brother loved her and took care of her, always the energetic, idiot big brother.

But that was what frightened Kushina, that man was like Naruto too, and their family was living happily.

Until her husband, and the father of these two lovely kids disappeared without any trace, it had been years and still there was no sign of him.

A tired sigh escaped from her lips, there was no point thinking about it now, she had to look after her two lovely kids, and that was the only thing that mattered to her.

Kushina gently gave a small kiss on Kasumi's cheek and slowly whispered in her ear,

"Good morning, my little princess..." said Kushina lovingly, her voice sounded like a melody and slowly a pair of violet eyes opened.

Kasumi groggily looked around, her vision was blurry, but after a few seconds her vision cleared and she saw her mother was beside her, with a lovely smile on her face.

"Mommy..." said Kasumi sleepily, she really wanted to sleep some more.

"Time to wake up...Come on, it is a beautiful morning," said Kushina happily with a smile, she found Kasumi's pout to be very cute.

"Okay..." said Kasumi disappointingly and woke up and again hugged her mother, one which she returned happily. This was how their mornings would start, well the ones when Kushina was not on duty.

A mischievous smile came on Kasumi's face as she watched her mother slowly edging towards her brother, and the look in her mother's eyes told her she was up to some mischief.

Kushina gently started tickling Naruto's chest, at first the boy made some sounds like "Uhmm" and "5 more mins", but she increased her tickling and soon Naruto jolted up from his bed with a frown on his face, which Kasumi and Kushina found to be very amusing.

"5 more mins Mom...Couldn't you give me some more time to sleep," whined Naruto, he rubbed his eyes in order to clear his hazy vision and to remove the little dust that accumulated around his eyes during his sleep.

"Rise and shine, Naruto," said Kushina mischievously, and put her hands on her hips,

"Big brother, you look funny with such a frown on your face," said Kasumi with a small giggle,

"Teme..." said Naruto in irritation, it was always like this. Kushina and Kasumi would always do something mischievous, and majority of the times he would be at the receiving end of their pranks.

But that was what he loved about them, they always brought joy to his life. Ever since the day his father disappeared, he was never fully happy. A part of his heart would always think, why did he abandon them?

They were such a happily family, he still remembered the happy times he had spent with his father, that man loved all of them, and then suddenly he vanished.

There was no letter, or evidence of what happened to him, he just vanished from their lives. Naruto knew how broken his mother and little sister were when he left, Kasumi was barely 3 years old at that time, and he was 6 years old.

It had been 4 years since he left, even the authorities were not able to find him, and after a year he was declared dead, even his mother's status as a member of the Scouting Legion did not provide them much help.

What was that man thinking? Or was he killed, or kidnapped? All these mysteries and no answer in sight, and this plagued Naruto each and every day.

He was interrupted from his thoughts, when someone gently hugged him, and rubbed his back affectionately, while another soft pair of hands were gently holding his hand.

"It will be alright..." said Kushina affectionately, she really felt very sad that Naruto had not been able to overcome the pain due to his father's abandonment of the family.

"Big brother, we are always there for you," said Kasumi with an innocent smile, a relieved smile came on Naruto's face as he realized he still had his mother and sister in his life.

These two were the light of his life, and were helping him every time, and he was grateful to them for everything. Sometimes, his little sister understood him without even hearing something from him, just a look in his eyes was enough to make her realize what he was feeling.

Naruto gently hugged his mother with help of his left hand, while he affectionately looked at his sister and gently caressed her cheek.

"Thank you," said Naruto gratefully, and he truly meant it.

Kushina then energetically got up, and punched her fist high in the air, and her voice echoed in the entire room,

**"WHOSE UP FOR SOME RAMEN?"** asked Kushina loudly, and the loud "Hell yeah" she got from her children and the smiles on their faces was well worth the display which she did.

She would not let them down, ever.

-oOoOo-

The trio were sitting at their breakfast table, Naruto and Kasumi were eating the Ramen with large smiles on their innocent faces, both the siblings really loved this dish, their mother had said that it was a dish that was taught to her by her mother.

Kushina watched her little angels eating their bowl of ramen happily, these were the moments that made her feel alive, and this was what she was fighting for.

A better future for her children, she wanted them to have a life beyond the walls, she did not want them to live like caged animals.

"So, did you like the Ramen?" asked Kushina with a small grin on her face,

"Mom, you are the best. THIS IS AWESOME!" said Naruto energetically, gone was the insecure boy that both the females had seen in the morning.

Kushina sometimes was really amazed by the maturity shown by her 10 year old son, he really tried to put up a happy-go lucky idiot attitude, he did it just to make his sister happy.

And right now seeing the annoyed tick mark on Kasumi's forehead, due to Naruto's loud yell made Kushina giggle.

"Brother, you are very loud," said Kasumi flatly, and looked at Naruto sternly. Kushina was quite surprised by her daughter's firm personality, she would grow up to be a very strong female, one who knew how to control her big brother.

However the mischievous glint in Naruto's eyes made Kushina realize, a prank was already coming their way. Naruto leaned closer to Kasumi, and whispered slowly in her right ear.

"Kasumi...there is a cockroach on your neck," said Naruto naughtily, and he got what he wanted.

In what appeared to be a flash, Kasumi jumped out of her chair, and gave a loud squeal and started jumping up, and down while constantly shaking her hands frantically in the air.

_"You really are the prankster of this house,"_ thought an amused Kushina, as Naruto went beside his little sister and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Big brother...there is a cockroach!MOM, HELP ME!" said Kasumi quickly, but was quite surprised when Naruto gently poked her forehead.

Kushina couldn't control it anymore, and was now laughing loudly as her son just made a fool out of her little daughter, albeit playfully.

"What!" said Kasumi in shock, she really didn't get what was happening.

"You are very loud...besides where is the cockroach?" asked Naruto in a naughty voice, and Kasumi looked at her neck and indeed there was nothing there.

Her cheeks went bright red with embarrassment and little anger as her brother had just turned the tables against her, and made her look like a fool.

"NARUTO!"

(10 minutes later)

Finally both the children had settled down, after running all over the house. Well, it was Kasumi following Naruto with a small stick in her hand, while Naruto chuckled on seeing his sister get so flustered.

It took Kushina's firm order to get both these kids in line, but still it didn't stop Kasumi from giving her brother a playful bop on the head.

"Meanie, Kasumi..." said Naruto with a pout, even he knew what he was doing was stupid for a 10 year old boy, but if it made Kasumi's life more exciting and happy then he was ready to act like an idiot all his life.

Naruto had seen how broken Kasumi was when their father left them, and since that very moment Naruto had made it his personal mission to never let his little sister feel lonely and sad.

_"I won't allow and pain and suffering to fall on you,"_ thought Naruto firmly, and Kushina felt really happy as she saw the look in her son's eyes.

If something happened to her, then she knew Naruto could take care of Kasumi. He was a very good son and big brother, after all.

"Mother...are you going on a mission today?" asked Kasumi curiously, she really was worried about her mother because every time the Scouting Legion came back from a mission, there were more than half of them dead,

"Yes, I have a very important mission today," said Kushina honestly, today she was going on a very important mission.

If successful, then the fate of humanity would be changed and they would finally be free from Titans, and she could live happily with her kids.

"Why?" asked Naruto roughly, Kushina looked at her son and she saw the anger in his eyes.

"It is necessary Naruto, we have to fight or mankind is doomed," explained Kushina patiently, she knew why Naruto was against this.

He really didn't like the Scouting Legion, after all his father had been a part of it too, and Kushina knew Naruto admired that man, and now he was gone. Naruto felt betrayed, and he just couldn't accept that his father had left him, so as any child would do, he found something to vent out his anger on.

Plus, he was really worried about her, and every time they came back he saw many people dead, and the anger, and the despair made Naruto dislike the Scouting Legion with each passing day, for a young child like him it was a pointless quest of venturing out of the walls just to get killed.

_"You will understand one day Naruto, and I'm sure you will be the voice of our people,"_ thought Kushina with determination,

Kushina knew Naruto had a great power in him, just like his father. He just needed a proper direction to direct all of his anger, and hatred on to, and she would make sure he would become Humanity's defender, and help them in their last stand against Titans.

Kasumi saw the tension rising, and immediately decided to divert the topic in order to avoid an argument.

"Mother, why do we have to live in these walls?" asked Kasumi quickly, Naruto had once explained to her something about "Stupid Titans", but let's just say her brother really didn't know how to explain something to young kids.

Kushina looked at her daughter with a thoughtful look on her face, was this the right time to tell Kasumi about the dark truth of their world?

_"But she is smarter than any person her age, I think it is right to tell her,"_ thought Kushina slowly

"We have to live in the protection of these walls, because our world is plagued by Titans," started Kushina slowly, she knew it was not a good thing to tell such dark tales to young kids, but this was what the world they were living in.

"Titans?" asked Kasumi in confusion, sure she had heard this word so many times, but she had never seen an actual Titan.

Looking at her brother made her realize, he must really dislike Titans as much as the Scouting Legion, the fact that he was gripping his hands tightly was a sign he was angry at them.

"They are mysterious race of giant humanoid monsters, who have plagued our world since eternity," said Kushina sadly

"But how is that possible? Where did they come from? And why did we not defeat them?" Kasumi asked lot of questions one after the other, and it was really testing Kushina's patience. Her daughter got very excited when she was about to know some mystery, and she didn't mind explaining it to her, but she just wanted her to ask one question at a time, but kids were always like that.

Looking at Naruto, he still had that frown on his face, and his cold black eyes showed he was still displeased that she was going on a mission, but he was also listening to her explanation, even if it was the 5th time hearing it.

"We don't know much about them, they destroyed entire civilizations and almost the entire humanity, during this destruction all the records also perished, and those people who knew even a little information about Titans died before they could pass the information. According to Legends, there was an ancient war in the past, and the Titans are said to have emerged from that war, but until we have proof we cannot accept this theory," explained Kushina patiently

"But this is the only theory you and our predecessors had, nothing has changed mom. We still live in these walls, only if the Scouting Legion were not so mad about going outside, Dad wouldn't have left us," said Naruto angrily

Kushina banged her hand on the table, she loved her son but nobody insulted the Scouting Legion and her comrades, they were fighting for humanity's future. When would Naruto understand?

"Naruto, stop this nonsense. Your father left because of his own reasons, you cannot blame the Scouting legion for this," said Kushina harshly

"My father was a good man, he would never have left us. It must have been the Scouting Legion who sent him on some stupid mission, and he never returned," said Naruto vehemently

"You have no proof of that, try to understand we are fighting for Humanity's survival, we are fighting for your survival. Until we defeat the titans, our future is doomed," said Kushina flatly

Kasumi watched as her brother and mother butted heads with each other, but were stubborn and no one was going to admit they were wrong.

"Our survival is within these walls, if we stay inside we are safe. These walls have protected us since centuries, mother don't risk your life like this. You are all we have got left..." said Naruto sadly, and averted his gaze from his mother whose own eyes softened on hearing that.

Kushina got up from her chair, and went towards her son, he was hot-headed but he was only worried about her, and that was enough for her. She put a hand on his head and ruffled his silky black hair.

"I'll always be by your side...no matter where I go, both of you will always be in my hearts, and nothing in the world will change that," said Kushina lovingly,

She put two fingers on both Naruto and Kasumi's chest respectively in order to emphasize her point, and for a second she saw a look of admiration in Naruto's eyes, and Kasumi was looking at her mother in awe.

"Mother, how many walls are there?" asked Kasumi curiously

"The survivors of the Titan invasion from all over the world, were forced to converge towards this place, and a few centuries ago they built these huge walls that has protected us from Titans. There are 3 walls, Wall Maria where we and most of the common people live, Wall Rose where the higher class people live, and Wall Sina where the king of our society lives along with his associates, and his own personal army. Wall Sina consists of the rich people, and a religious faction that preaches the Wall's protection and refers the walls as gods, pretty stupid, don't you think?" asked Kushina cheerfully,

"What are these walls made up of?" asked Naruto sharply, he had once seen a titan and he was terrified that day, to think just a wall was holding hundreds of those monsters was not realistic to him,

"I don't know, they give me a strange feeling too" said Kushina with a frown,

"Mother, why did you choose the Scouting Legion? Brother, told me that it is shit in comparison to Military Police," said Kasumi clue lessly, she had no idea how much trouble she had put Naruto in, the fact that Kasumi just sweared and praised the Military Police was the final straw.

Naruto maybe hotheaded, but even he knew these two points really pissed her mother, and she grabbed his ear harshly and looked at him sternly,

"Naruto, if I ever find you teaching your little sister such words, I'll break your bones," said Kushina angrily, and gave a little twist to Naruto's ear,

"OW! I got it...leave my ear," said Naruto in pain, but Kushina looked at him sternly one last time, and then left his ear.

"What's this I'm hearing about the Military Police? They are nothing but lazy, idiots who don't do their jobs," said Kushina disappointingly

"But big brother said he wants to join the Military Police," said Kasumi innocently, and this time Naruto smacked his forehead. Now he had done it, and the murderous look his mother was giving him was making him nervous.

"Talk," said Kushina firmly,

"It's true, I want to join the Military Poilce," said Naruto truthfully, there was no point in lying now.

_"Stupid Kasumi, are little sisters always this dumb?"_ thought Naruto with a frown,

"Why?" asked Kushina flatly, it seemed her son had plans to do the opposite from what she wanted from him.

"Come on, Mom...if I join the Police, we can move to Wall Sina, I can give all of us a comfortable, rich life. We won't have to worry over a Titan invasion, as we are doing now while living in Wall Maria. The money I will earn will be enough for all us," said Naruto honestly, why couldn't his mother understand, he too sympathized with other people, but his family came first.

"I'm disappointed to hear this from you," said Kushina sadly, and Naruto& Kasumi's eyes widened on hearing that, their mother had never said such a thing before.

And this seemed to enrage Naruto even more,

"Yes, I'm not what you wanted me to be, is it too bad that I want my family safe, is it mother?" asked Naruto firmly, and his dark black eyes sent a clear message to Kushina and Kasumi, that Naruto needed a reason.

"You are right, it is important to protect your family, and I am glad you are so thoughtful about us," said Kushina honestly with a smile,

"But?" asked Kasumi in confusion, as she had a feeling that her mother was just not done yet.

"What about other people? Like you, they have mothers too, they have little brothers and sisters, will you be so selfish and abandon your own kind for your personal gain. Think about all those people, who died building these walls, they could have just ran off somewhere, but they didn't; and I'm sure many of them died building it. If all of them had thought like you, then you and I wouldn't even be alive today," said Kushina harshly

Naruto was quite surprised on hearing that, his mother had clearly thrown a very harsh fact right in front of his face.

"Then what should I do?" asked Naruto in confusion, this brought a smile on Kushina's face and she looked at both of her children with determination.

"The only thing you can do, is fight or die trying. It is better to die human, then living our lives as caged animals," said Kushina firmly, her voice portraying the utmost conviction of her soul.

"Yes, Mommy. I want to become like you, and protect our people," said Kasumi excitedly, and Kushina ruffled her hair with a proud smile on her face.

"Now that's my daughter..." said Kushina proudly, and now both of the females were looking at Naruto expectantly which made him leave a tired sigh.

"Yeah, me too" said Naruto silently, Kushina knew he still was not convinced but he was getting there.

Naruto went towards his room, and after a few minutes he returned after changing his clothes, he was wearing a light blue t-shirt and black pants, Kushina and Kasumi looked at him curiously.

"Going somewhere?" asked Kushina knowingly, she knew her son had a habit of going for a walk whenever he wanted to think about something.

"I'll be back in an hour," said Naruto seriously, and left the house leaving Kushina and Kasumi alone.

Kasumi was still staring at the door through which her brother had just left. She loved her brother, he was kind, annoying and caring at the same time; and he never made her feel alone.

"Mom..." said Kasumi hesitantly, Kushina stopped eating her ramen and looked at her daughter curiously

"What is it?" asked Kushina intriguingly,

"He loves you a lot, he is just..." said Kasumi slowly, but was stopped when Kushina put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"I know, my princess...your brother he is different and I know how he feels. He is right in his own way, as a man has to look after his family, in that regards he his better than your father," said Kushina bitterly

"Mom..." said Kasumi affectionately, and gave a small reassuring smile to Kushina which brought a smile to her face.

"Thank you, after your father left Naruto was very badly affected, but he did not show it and always put up a brave front for both of us, that's just the kind of person he is. He always saved a portion of the money I gave him, and has been secretly trying to save it for you," said Kushina shockingly

Kasumi's eyes widened on hearing that, their mother earned a decent income, but things were getting costlier with each passing day, as the number of people living inside the walls were increasing, and there was no proper supply of goods and services, and the Royal family was busy enjoying in their own world.

"For me?" asked Kasumi in shock,

"Yes, he wants to give you a good life, free from any dangers and in our current circumstances that is only possible within Wall Sina, but without being very rich, or very high recommendations, you cannot live there," said Kushina honestly,

"Is this why, he wants to join the Military Police?" asked Kasumi curiously

"Very clever, yes the Military Police personnel can live there...but we have to defeat the Titans, otherwise no place would be safe. We cannot hide, when the existence of our kind is at stake, and sooner or later I am going to need both of your help in the Scouting Legion." said Kushina truthfully, she decided to reveal their truth to her daughter, as she knew only Kasumi could convince Naruto to join the Survery Corps.

"What do this Scouting Legion do?" asked Kasumi curiously, she always wondered what type of work her mother did.

"We try to find out everything about the Titans, and we are also the best experienced fighters against Titans, the fate of humanity depends on us. We also try to search for useful resources that can help the people," explained Kushina briefly

"Then are you powerful?" asked Kasumi eagerly, from what she had heard from her mother, she must be a very strong soldier.

"Yes, I am Lieutenant in the Scouting legion, and one of the best fighters, it is because I am special," said Kushina slowly

"Special?" asked Kasumi in confusion,

"We are the last descendants of a powerful clan that used to exist hundreds of years ago, when mankind was in an era called "Shinobi era". I don't know much, but our clan was called the Uzumaki clan, we had a special power in us and some of us could even suppress and seal monsters," said Kushina briefly

"Amazing," said Kasumi in awe, it really made her feel great that she was part of such a clan,

"Over time our clan perished due to Titans, along with similar other clans. We simply didn't have the numbers, the Titans were enumerous, but a handful of us survived and over time, they linked up with other remaining members of different clans," explained Kushina honestly

"So, we are really powerful, and that is why you want big brother to join you, I get it" said Kasumi happily, but was surprised when Kushina's face became a little serious,

"That is only half of the truth," said Kushina darkly,

"Huh?" asked Kasumi in confusion,

"You inherited all of my traits while your brother is different, he did get some of my abilities but he has the power that can make us win this war," said Kushina honestly

"Is big brother so powerful?" asked Kasumi in shock, how could her mother say her brother had the ability that can help humanity win their greatest war,

Kushina bit her lip, this was a very dark fact of her life, the fate of humanity was depending on her son, and he didn't even know it. He was so young, and it was very hard for her to place such a big responsibility on him, but the truth was that was her son's destiny.

From the day Naruto was born, his fate was decided, he was the only hope they had.

**"Because Naruto is the last descendant of the most powerful clan of our world"**

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**AN: Thanks for reading.**

**AN/1: This is a combination fic of AOT and Naruto, so expect some traits of Naruto too. The mysteries will be reveled as the story progresses.**

**An/2: Ages: Naruto (10), Kasumi (7), Kushina (35), Unknown Father (35).**


	2. Agony

**Disclaimer: I do now own Naruto/Shingeki No Kyojin, well if I did then Shingeki No Kyojin would be updated weekly, and Naruto won't be a Sasuke fanboy, seriously now everyone just accepts Sasuke, he is a criminal idiots, he should be hanged. I just wish A and Bee do a double lariat on his emo ass.**

**Thanks for all the favs/follows, and listing in communities. The reviews could have been a bit more, but I understand that it was the first chapter and nothing major happened. Here's hoping this time, people do give their thoughts on my work. For those who did review, you have my thanks.**

**In this story, some big plots of Naruto and Shingeki No Kyojin have been combined, and it will remain a mystery till the end of this story.**

**So, this is not one of those crossovers where Naruto is sent to a different dimension by Tobi, with all his powers. Those types of fics are good too, but certainly not my style of writing a crossover story. I mean if he arrives in AOT world directly from the 4th Great ninja war, then what's the point of the story?**

**You would have to severely under power him, or overpower the Titans, as Sage Mode and Biju Mode Naruto can kick Titan army back to hell.**

**Enjoy the chapter...**

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**Chapter 2: Agony**

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The Scouting Legion, or more popularly known as _"The Survey Corps"_ among the common people.

It had been a 100 years since the formation of the Survey Corps, they were the strongest warriors of humanity, and were the only hope mankind had against the Titan army.

Over the years, The Survey Corps made dangerous expeditions, most of them being suicidal which led to death of almost all of their soldiers.

The Average life of a soldier in the Survey Corps was 3 years, some perished as soon as they joined the legion; while others sacrificed themselves for humanity in order to gain any information about the Titans that would help in the survival of mankind.

It was due to the Survey Corps, that mankind was able to discover some important facts about the Titans.

Titans were monsters that had no purpose other than devouring humans, the fact that they never harmed other wild animals was a proof of their interest in humanity only.

Titans also never had any need to eat humans, as they had survived for a few centuries without eating humans as they had built the Walls, well except for the brave soldiers who ventured out of the walls to defeat the Titans.

Such information did not come without a price, and the Survey Corps lost hundreds of Soldiers in gaining this information. But that was the motto of the Corps

_"Fight for the greater good, and lay down everything: your body, your soul, your friends, your family and every feeling in your heart for humanity's survival"_

They were soldiers, nothing more, nothing less. Victory and Glory would be theirs.

In order to fulfill this motto, right now an important meeting was about to begin, one that would be the stepping stone in changing mankind's fate.

A blonde haired man sat in the center of a small room, his hair were neatly done and his face had a stern look, his veteran eyes showed his resolve as well as the sacrifices he made for humanity.

Erwin Smith had been in the Legion for a long time, his entire life he had searched for answers. The only goal he had in life was to find a way to defeat the Titans and free humanity from enslavement in these walls. In his quest he had lost a lot of friends, loved ones and comrades.

But everything was worth it, if it meant humanity could be free.

Today he had received an information that could change everyone's future, and right now he was looking at the faces of some of his most trusted soldiers.

Specifically he was looking at Kushina Uzumaki. That woman was one of the best soldiers the Legion ever had, her abilities were flawless but more than that she had a resolve to never give up, no matter what pain came on her she fought back, and she shared the same dream as Erwin, and that was to exterminate all the Titans from the world.

Around Kushina, were Zak, Andrea, Timmy and Alex. This was "Team 4", the best team in the Scouting Legion after Captain Levi's squad, and right now they were going to embark on a dangerous mission.

"What's the situation, Commander Erwin?" asked Kushina respectfully, her tone was flat but her eyes had a fire in them that every soldier in the Legion had.

Erwin closed his eyes and took a deep breath, if this plan worked then it would open up a lot of mysteries, but if it failed then he would lose one of his best teams.

"All our lives we have searched for answers to defeat Titans, and now we may have found one," said Erwin slowly, and the eager looks on the faces of his men showed him that they would volunteer for the mission, if it meant saving humanity.

"Did we receive any information from Squad 7, Commander?" asked Kushina curiously,

As far as she knew recently a small team from the Legion had ventured out of the walls, she had no clue about their mission, but it had been days since any one of them made back.

"They were annihilated by Titans," said Erwin sadly, no matter the reasons, he knew every soldier that died was his responsibility.

All the members of Squad 4 had disheartened looks on their faces, they were losing comrades really fast. And they were not getting much recruits with each passing year, no one wanted to join the Legion these days. They felt they were safe inside the walls forever.

What a joke.

"But they discovered a hideout, which we believe could be the place where the Titans could have originated from," said Erwin darkly

"What?" asked Zak in shock, this was a huge discovery.

Erwin didn't miss the slight scowl on Andrea's face, what was the young girl up to?

Andrea Samos, a 17 year old blonde girl, she was average looking and had an introverted personality. But her skills were flawless, and she had graduated among the Top 3 of her batch. The interesting thing was that everyone from the Top 10 had joined the Military Police, but not Andrea.

She had voluntarily joined the Scouting Legion, but from her personality and her records something was always fishy. But Erwin couldn't find anything against her, and he needed skilled soldiers like Andrea, so he had decided to just keep an eye on her.

So far, she had not done anything worthy of treason.

"Something wrong, Andrea?" asked Erwin sharply, and his eyes bore into the blonde haired girl's eyes.

"Nothing at all, its a shame we lost another team to Titans,'' said Andrea stoically, she didn't even flinch at Erwin's gaze. It was as if she had no feelings.

Erwin narrowed his gaze at the girl, he had nothing against the girl, she just gave him the creeps. He decided to let it go for now.

"What do you need from us?" asked Alex strictly, he was a soldier who never wasted time in chats, if they had to do something then they better do it.

Erwin took out a small map from his drawer and brought the lamp more closer to his desk, the team was now standing in front of Erwin's table and were looking at the map quite seriously.

"Team 7's second last report came from Sector 49, which is approximately 10 miles away from here. Their mission was classified so I cannot tell you what they were doing," said Erwin in a firm tone, and this meant that the soldiers were on a need-to-know basis.

When Erwin received affirmative nods from his subordinates, he decided to continue his explanation and pointed a pencil on a small portion of the map.

"They were encountering the Titans, when those monsters started retreating. Instead of falling back to the Walls, Team 7 took a risk and followed the Titans discreetly and their last report was from Sector 31 which is 50 clicks away from Sector 49. We never received any further communication from them, and it is safe to assume they are all dead by now," said Erwin stoically,

"They may be alive...how can you say that!" said Timmy in protest, how could their commander just throw away his soldiers!

"It has been 1 month since we lost contact...and you know what that means," said Erwin harshly

Everyone just gave tired sighs, Team 7 was now officially dead, no one could survive without food and water in Titan territory for a month. Now the only question remained was, what did the commander need from them?

"You want us to go in, and find out the secrets of that place, don't you?" asked Kushina seriously, somehow she knew there was a dark secret in Sector 31.

Erwin looked at his lieutenant for a moment, he did not want to lose her, but at the same time she was the only person who was skilled enough to sneak in and get the job done.

Humanity was desperate, and with every failure of Scouting Legion, the royal house and government were thinking of dissolving them. He needed something to convince the leaders, that the Scouting Legion was necessary for humanity and they were making breakthroughs.

"Kushina, this is a blackops mission. Recently, we have lost many men and have costed the government quite a fortune with no results. They have ceased our operations for 2 months, until that time is over I am sure that the secret that is in Sector 31 would vanish. It could be our biggest key against Titans, if you do this then you and your team are on your own during the mission," said Erwin honestly

"But that's suicide and treason!" said Andrea sternly, what was up with her?

"Sacrifice is required if Humanity wants to win. We may be known as traitors today, but if we succeed then our race would remember us as heroes. The stakes are too high, I'm in commander" said Alex immediately, his friends had been killed by Titans, and he was going to make sure those bastards pay for that.

"What if the report was wrong? What if all of this is a lie...you want us to go behind enemy lines with slim to no intel and any support!" said Timmy with a frown, he was ready to sacrifice himself but he needed a strong purpose.

"Commander, are you sure that intel was not false?" asked Kushina seriously, a part of her heart was telling her to go and change the fate of the world, but another part of her heart was scared for her children. What would happen to them, if she died?

"I know, Lieutenant Marcus's handwriting, and he wouldn't waste his life trying to write a false report with his blood!" said Erwin seriously

Kushina looked at her team, Alex was already ready for this blackops mission. Timmy looked at the map for a few more seconds, and Kushina could see a lot of sweat was on his forehead, she couldn't blame him, this mission was dangerous.

Andrea just gave a nod indicating she was in, and Timmy nodded after a few moments. Now the only one remaining was Zak,

"Are we really doing this?" asked Zak doubtfully, he just didn't know what was right and what was wrong.

Kushina put a hand on the young boy's shoulders, he was barely 20 and had a bright future. She could understand how difficult it must be for him, but this was necessary.

"I share your fears and doubts...and I know what we are about to do is extremely dangerous, but for the sake of mankind we must do this. Our people are losing hope, and it won't be long before the Titans break in. I don't want my kids to live as caged birds, neither do any of us, so fight by my side and we will succeed," assured Kushina gently, and Zak saw the determination in her eyes.

_"As long as she is with us, we have hope"_ thought Zak seriously, and the fear in his eyes disappeared.

Entire Team 4 now stood in front of Erwin with a firm look on their faces, no doubts, no hesitation. Just the mission, and the mission alone.

These were the brave soldiers of Scouting Legion.

"Can you die for humanity?" asked Erwin honestly, and he looked at each of his men with a firm gaze.

"We just want to win and kick the Titans back to hell!" said Kushina loudly, and Erwin smirked on hearing that, she sure was a good leader.

"This is a true Salute, I'm proud to have soldiers like you," said Erwin proudly, and gave a firm salute to his men.

All of them had the same look in their eyes, and their feelings were clear.

_"We will win!"_

_"Naruto, Kasumi I will create a world where you can live without any fear,"_ thought Kushina firmly

* * *

Naruto walked in the Streets of Wall Maria, a lot of thoughts were going through his mind. Should he really believe what his mother had said?

He looked around and saw people living their daily lives. Shopkeepers were busy selling their goods, there was a lot of commotion around. Children were playing games in a corner, and this made him a little sad.

Naruto didn't know why but people stayed away from his family, and it irritated him a lot. Was it their face, or was their Uzumaki name?

Wherever he went, people always looked at him as if he was a freak. Their house was on the outskirts of the district, the citizens of Wall Maria didn't isolate them.

They did sell them goods, clothes and other regular stuff but there was always that scared look in their eyes.

He was interrupted from his thoughts when someone hit him lightly on the head, and he heard a familiar voice laughing behind him.

_"Damn, she sneaked up on me again!"_ thought Naruto disappointingly

"Got you, " said a feminine voice gently

Naruto turned around and his eyes showed him a young girl standing behind him, with a wonderful smile on her face. The smile that brought a little happiness in his heart every time.

The young girl was of the same age as him, and her height was a little shorter, but the most beautiful thing about the girl, were her bright silky orange hair and those mysterious light colored eyes that always had kindness in them.

"Petra, you really are a pain in the ass," said Naruto grumpily, he liked teasing her a little.

The girl named "Petra" instead of being offended by Naruto's jab, now had a small grin on her face which soon turned into a wide smile again.

"And I really like you Naru-chan," said Petra with a mischievous smirk, and the slight twitching of Naruto's eyebrows was a sign she was successful in her trick.

"Teme...I told you not to call me that," said Naruto embarrassingly, his cheeks were a little red and Petra didn't miss that, and lightly squeezed his right cheek,

"Your mom used to call you that, don't you remember _N-a-r-u-c-h-a-n_" said Petra slowly, she spoke in such a manner that the word "chan" made Naruto a little more embarrassed.

Kushina used to call Naruto that name, when he was a kid and this was one of the things he didn't like now, but secretly he loved it when his mother called him that name, just not when people called him by that.

He looked at Petra sternly for a second, but after a few seconds he started laughing and was soon joined by his best friend in his laugh.

Petra Ral, was the best as well as the only friend Naruto had in his life, he still remembered the day when he had met her.

* * *

_(Flashback: A Few Years Ago)_

_A young girl ran through the dark alleys of Wall Maria, she was scared, nervous and tired at the same time._

_She was running as fast as her little legs could take her, the fear of being alone was evident on her face, and the footsteps behind her were nearing with every passing second._

_This was just another regular day for Petra, she had just gone to the market with her father to buy some things, when she had got lost in the crowd._

_A man had offered her his help, and she was really grateful to him, but that gratefulness turned into fear when that same man had tried to sell her off to slavers._

_She had heard stories about the crimes increasing in Wall Maria, drug dealers, kidnappers, murderers were on the loose. Many kids would disappear never to be found again, even the Police as well as the Garrison were helpless or were not caring about the people._

_Petra now truly regretted leaving her father's hand in order to look at a toy store for a moment, she just wanted to go back home._

_"I'm sorry, Father. I'm so sorry," thought Petra sadly, as she heard her pursuers say something like "Almost caught the little shit",_

_She put the last ounce of energy she had left and ran as fast as she could, she could see two ways up ahead which divided into different alleys. Acting on her instincts and luck she took a right turn._

_Petra had just ran a few steps before she was grabbed swiftly from the back, and she felt a pair of hands on her mouth. Before she could scream, she was dragged by her handler into a nearby dustbin._

_Dark and dirty were the two words she could describe her current hiding place with. Her terrified eyes tried to look at the person who had grabbed her, but she was stopped._

_"Shut up, if you want to survive," said a calm but firm voice, and Petra heard the rough voices of her kidnappers near her, so she obeyed instantly._

_"Where is that little shit?" asked a rough voice, and from the sound of it, the man was pissed as hell._

_"Maybe, she went that way," said another voice, and Petra heard the other man agreeing and after a few seconds, their footsteps could be heard moving further away from her, until they could not be heard._

_Petra gave a relieved sigh, her heartbeat slowed down and she felt a little safe for now. The hands on her mouth went away and she turned around to look at the person who had helped her._

_"Sorry about that, there was no time," said a young voice, followed by a nervous chuckle._

_Petra looked behind and now she saw who this person was, it was a young boy the same age as her. He had silky black hair, and dark black eyes but his face was a little chubby,_

_"He looks cute," thought Petra innocently, but she noticed some discomfort on the boy's face._

_"Something wrong?" asked Petra slowly, and the boy just gave her a nervous chuckle,_

_"Nothing...it's just you are a little heavy," said the boy nervously, and Petra felt a little embarrassed as she was clearly lying on top of the boy,_

_"Shut up..." said a embarrassed Petra, and the boy just shrugged it off._

_Petra slowly got up and now the boy reacted quickly and told her to wait, she saw him peeking out of the dustbin and his dark black eyes were keenly observing all the directions for any signs of the thugs._

_She had to admit, he was quite smart for his age, and it seemed he certainly was the cautious type as he didn't want to take any risks, even if they knew they were alone._

_The boy looked around for a few moments, and when he was sure he gave a small nod to Petra, and got on top of the dustbin. Petra looked at the boy gratefully, as he offered her his hand to get her out of that dustbin._

_"Thank you.." said Petra with a small smile, and tried to dust away the dirt that was accumulated on her clothes- an action that was mirrored by the boy, as he too tried to wipe the dirt away from his clothes._

_"You have something on your nose," said Petra patiently, as she noticed some dirt around the edge of the boy's nose._

_"Huh?" asked the boy in confusion, and tried to rub his nose but he missed the spot._

_Petra bit her lip, this was the least she could do to thank him, she stepped a little closer to the boy and wiped the dirt away from his nose, earning a grateful smile and a "Thank you" from the boy._

_"Petra Ral.." said Petra firmly, and offered her hand to the boy,_

_She noticed the boy looking at her curiously, but in a few seconds he gave a bright smile that made her a little relaxed, and shook her hand gently._

_"Naruto Uzumaki..."_

_Petra nodded and gave Naruto a small smile, and now the boy decided to ask her something, now that they were safe._

_"Why are you in this place? And, who were those men?" asked Naruto curiously,_

_"I got lost in the market...and then-" said Petra sadly, but could not continue as more tears slipped from her eyes. She wanted to go back to her father._

_To her surprise, she felt a soft pair of hands wash away the tears from her face, she looked up and saw Naruto giving her a reassuring smile, which really made her feel safe._

_"It will be alright...you can go home soon," said Naruto gently, and gave his best possible smile to ease the girl a little,_

_Petra didn't know why, but she was really grateful that she met this boy. If not for him, the slavers would have sold her to god knew where, that thought alone sent shivers down her spine._

_"I need to stop thinking like this," thought Petra nervously,_

_She decided to divert her mind from such things, and looked at her companion as she too had a few questions for him._

_"I told you how I got here...but how did you end up in such a place?" asked Petra curiously, and Naruto just scratched the back of his head and had a nervous smile on his face, that made Petra a little suspicious._

_"Well, you see I kind of got lost too..."_

**"WHAT!"**

* * *

A small smile came on Naruto's lips as he remembered that memory, the day he got his friend whom he cared about the most after his mother and sister.

Petra was really a good friend, she was kind, naughty but most of all she was fair to him. She never gave him the fearful looks that most people gave him, nor did she ever care about what people said to him.

She was just there for him, he was really lucky to have her as a friend.

He still remembered how angry and worried their parents were when they found both of them, he had never seen his mother so worried since then.

"Are you okay?" asked Petra gently, and rubbed his cheeks slowly with her soft hands.

Naruto looked at his friend for a moment, her eyes showed she was worried about him, and maybe it would help if he discussed his problem with her.

"Well I am confused," said Naruto with a frown, he was really torn between accepting his mother's beliefs or following his own.

"Let's sit near the lake...and you can tell me about it," said Petra cheerfully,

"It's fine...you don't have to worry-" said Naruto quickly, was it right to talk about his family problems with her? He just didn't know what to do.

"Dumbass, you would send yourself to an early grave without me...and besides what are friends for," said Petra seriously, and Naruto saw the look in her eyes and whatever argument he had died in his throat.

"Fine" said Naruto grumpily, and walked ahead of Petra, he was sure she had not seen the grateful smile on his face.

But Petra had seen Naruto's smile, and giggled a little on her friend's antics. He really was a silly boy, and she was a kind girl.

This was their friendship.

* * *

Naruto and Petra were sitting on the banks of a small lake, watching the kids playing in the water, while some men tried to catch some fish from the water.

"So, that's how it is..." said Petra slowly, she now knew what was troubling her best friend.

"I just want to protect them, that is the only thing I want" said Naruto firmly, and Petra noticed how tightly he had gripped the edge of their seat.

"Your mother is right Naruto," said Petra seriously, and she noticed the anger and slight betrayal in Naruto's eyes.

"But-" said Naruto in protest, and this time his voice was a little loud as some people gave both of them irritated looks.

"Keep it low, chibi!" scolded Petra, and Naruto bonked her on the head,

"You are even more short than me," said Naruto irritatingly, and Petra was right in front of his face with a scary look on her face.

**"Naruto..."** said Petra murderously, and Naruto just glared back more defiantly. He was not losing, finally Petra gave a tired sigh and grabbed him in a headlock.

"I am not saying you are wrong...it is good that you want to protect them, but it is our duty to protect our people. You should think about joining the Scouting Legion, maybe we can free our world from Titans, then you won't have to worry about your family's safety," explained Petra briefly

She was quite surprised when she didn't receive any reply from Naruto, she looked to her side and saw Naruto's face had turned blue and he had a nervous smile on his face.

"Teme...leave my neck," said Naruto slowly, and Petra quickly released him from the headlock.

"I'm sorry...are you okay?" asked Petra worriedly, she was muttering _"Stupid"_ over and over in her head, how could she not realize he was not comfortable.

"It's alright...I didn't know you had strong hands," said Naruto jokingly, and this time Petra's eyebrows twitched.

"What did you say?" asked Petra sternly, and immediately Naruto waved his hands in front of her.

"Nothing...I meant you are strong," said Naruto instantly, and Petra's scary face was replaced by a wide smile,

_"Women, are so damn confusing,"_ thought Naruto tiredly, he could never understand the females in his life. One was a hothead, while the other two were kind as well as annoying at the same time. But their temper was a thing to be wary of,

And Naruto never wanted to be on the receiving end of that.

"You want to Join the Legion?" asked Naruto skeptically, and threw a small rock in the lake,

"The way we think is different...but we have the same goal." said Petra mysteriously, and Naruto looked at his friend with a curious gaze.

"I just want to protect my dad...so that I can spend my life with him peacefully. Until we fight back against the Titans, we are not safe. If the walls fall, no one would be safe, it is better to fight for our people, then live our lives as cowards," said Petra with determination,

Naruto was quite impressed with her dream, she had a goal just like him. And she was maybe right in her own way,

"The way we think is different, but I still don't want you to join the Legion," said Naruto harshly,

"Why?" asked Petra curiously, and Naruto averted his gaze from her curious eyes.

He did not want to admit it, that he was worried about her. If he told her that, she would just laugh it off and call him silly,

Petra waited for an answer but when she did not receive one, she edged a little closer to her friend and grasped his hand gently.

"If you really care about your family, and want to keep them safe...fight against the Titans, and exterminate them," said Petra firmly, and Naruto just nodded.

His thoughts had become a little more clear, and he could understand his mother little more, and why she was fighting.

_"Safety is just an illusion, and illusions are always deceptive"_

Naruto still remembered the last words which his father had told him before he disappeared, and he still didn't know what those words meant. But he would find their meaning, at any cost.

Petra looked at the setting sun in the sky, and she knew it was time to go back.

"It's getting late, we need to go home. Kasumi must be waiting for me with Miss Sampson at our house..." said Naruto slowly, it was as if he had read her thoughts.

"Your Mom's out on a mission?" asked Petra curiously, she knew Kushina and quite frankly that woman was her idol.

"Yeah...don't know what it is. I'll go home now, don't want to keep Kasumi waiting," said Naruto frankly, and got up to leave

He felt Petra's hand gripping his hand, and he looked at her curiously.

"I'm coming too..." said Petra simply,

"Why?" asked Naruto curiously,

"Come on...I want to meet little Kasumi too. Please.." requested Petra, and made such an innocent face that Naruto could not deny her.

"Fine"

* * *

Naruto and Petra were slowly walking back to Outskirts of Zhingashina district, both of them were holding each other's hands. It was just a common habit, that Petra liked to follow and Naruto didn't mind it, in fact he felt a little happy too.

Both of them heard some panicked voices, and saw some strange light in the nearby sky.

Naruto's danger senses kicked in, he knew something was wrong as he could feel the heat that was coming from the side where his home was. He left Petra's hands and ran towards his home.

"WAIT..." screamed Petra, but he was already off at full speed.

Petra didn't know why, but she had a real bad feeling when she looked at the color of the sky, and ran after Naruto at full speed.

_"Please, Please..."_

Her heartbeat was increasing with each passing second, as the voices from before started becoming more clear and her fear rose.

"What a terrible thing happened..."

"Poor women..."

"Look at the boy, he is her brother isn't he?"

Petra clearly heard the voices of the people, and when she took the final turn to reach Naruto's house, the sight that greeted her would forever haunt her.

Naruto's house was engulfed in fire, many people were trying to put out the fire, and she saw some Policemen were also arriving to help, but when she looked in a corner the thing which she saw terrified her soul.

Petra saw her best friend had collapsed on his knees, and his entire body was shaking badly

**"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"**

Petra was shook violently out of her stupor as she heard Naruto's painful scream in the entire street, and she ran after him.

She ran after Naruto, and immediately embraced him from the back, but when she looked at the thing Naruto was staring at, her eyes widened in horror.

There lying in front of her was Kasumi's body, and it was ripped in **HALF!**

She had burn marks all over her body, and there was a pool of blood beneath her, some pieces of her flesh were scattered on the ground.

There was another badly burnt body beside Kasumi, and Petra's mind immediately identified her as Miss Sampson, a family friend of the Uzumaki's, and Kasumi's caretaker, when Kushina was out on missions.

She saw Naruto's hands were soaked in Kasumi's blood, and the terrified look on his face scared Petra.

"Naruto..." said Petra in a tearful voice, and touched her friend.

He was cold.

His eyes were lifeless.

Petra couldn't feel any emotions coming from Naruto, it was as if he was dead.

"This can't be happening..." said a terrified Naruto, and he didn't even realize the tears flowing from his eyes.

_"Big Brother, we are always there for you"_

His little sister's words still rang in his mind, all the memories, all their moments. He felt a hole in his heart, and his eyes looked at the body of his deceased sister.

Kasumi was dead.

_Dead_

_Dead_

_Dead_

**"NO!"** yelled Naruto in agony, and clutched his head with his hands, and tears freely feel from his eyes.

Petra closed the little girl's eyes and tears slipped from her eyes, as she was shocked but she noticed something in Kasumi's left hand. Petra took the small piece of paper from Kasumi's hand, and opened it.

**"Titans..."**

The word that was a curse to humanity was written on the paper, and it was written in **BLOOD**!

"Titans..." said a shocked Petra, but she was further shocked when a strong force blew her a few feet away.

She hazily looked up and saw Naruto's entire body was wrapped in blue flames, blood was leaking from his hands, all the people in the street had fallen unconscious.

The air was so heavy that Petra couldn't breathe, and the last thing she saw would be forever etched in her brain.

That face,

Naruto's face had a lot of blood on it, but-

His eyes had changed.

They were now filled with hatred, the sea of anger was seen in them. The will to destroy everything, and the despair in his heart.

His eyes were Red!

**His War with Titans had just begun...**

* * *

**AN: Thanks for reading.**

**AN/1: The mystery will be unveiled as the story progresses.**

**AN/2: Please leave your Reviews**


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